When did you last receive pro­mo­tion­al e-mails from providers whose news­let­ter you never signed up for? Revised UK reg­u­la­tions of the anti-spam law, founded in 2003, state that online marketers in the UK can only send e-mails to those who have agreed be­fore­hand. That’s where the double opt in process comes into play. Busi­nesses are still allowed to send e-mails 'cold', but there must be the option for the recipient to opt out when they want to.

What is double opt in?

Double opt in is a technique from the e-mail marketing sector, or more precisely, news­let­ter dispatch. If a user signs up for a company’s news­let­ter, they should be able to withdraw their sub­scrip­tion at any point. The double opt in process is im­ple­men­ted through a con­firm­a­tion e-mail con­tain­ing a link. This is so that users, whose e-mail addresses are in­vol­un­tar­ily entered into mailing lists, are protected from spam. Sending out com­mer­cial e-mails without per­mis­sion can be really annoying, but by using the double opt in process, you can ensure the recipient really wants to receive your company’s news. In some countries where it’s illegal to send news­let­ters without per­mis­sion, the double opt in process ensures legal certainty.

From confirmed opt in to double opt in

Confirmed opt in used to be standard practice. All the user had to do to register for the news­let­ter, was to enter their e-mail address into the list. Due to in­creas­ing amounts of e-mail spam, this method is no longer feasible since there was such a high risk of e-mail addresses being misused. These new reg­u­la­tions woll be enforced by The Office of the In­form­a­tion Com­mis­sion­er and any business that doesn’t comply will face tough penalties, as hefty as £5,000.

The term 'per­mis­sion mar­ket­ing' is when companies aim to sell goods and services, but only when the potential customer has given their per­mis­sion. This is to prevent them being over­loaded with in­form­a­tion, known as 'in­ter­rup­tion mar­ket­ing'. E-mails with com­mer­cial content should not continue to be sent once the recipient has opted out. If this rule isn’t adhered to and unwanted ad­vert­ising is still sent, the company could face warnings and fines. Double opt ins are the only legally-secure solution in e-mail marketing. Other forms of marketing, such as push no­ti­fic­a­tions for apps or SMS services can be also confirmed via a two-step process.

Pros and cons of double opt in

The biggest advantage of the double opt in process regarding news­let­ters and e-mails is obvious: prac­tic­ally full legal certainty. Why not 100% legal certainty? This only exists if you also take the structure of the con­firm­a­tion e-mail into account because this has to follow certain rules (see below):

A further advantage: the two-stage con­firm­a­tion shows that the recipient is def­in­itely in­ter­ested in receiving e-mails and news­let­ters from the company. If a user receives unwanted e-mails in their inbox, it could have a negative effect on the way they view your business. The business could suffer if their e-mails are seen as spam.

Many marketers see con­firm­a­tion e-mails as dis­ad­vant­age­ous. It’s an extra hurdle to overcome in order to get another contact on board. The recipient may change their mind or forget to click on the con­firm­a­tion link. A popular method to ensure that the recipient confirms the sub­scrip­tion is by offering them coupons or discount codes which can be used once the con­firm­a­tion has gone through.

Im­ple­ment­ing this technique requires high ad­min­is­trat­ive and technical effort. There are pro­fes­sion­al news­let­ter software solutions available that make it easy for you to enable a double opt in function in your e-mails.

Guidelines for the con­firm­a­tion e-mail

Make sure to follow the UK reg­u­la­tions properly so that you or your business aren’t accused of sending spam e-mails:  

  • Include a link to opt-out
  • Include your company’s actual address
  • Make sure the subject line is suitable
  • Make sure the e-mail address you use is friendly and ap­pro­pri­ate
  • If the e-mail contains ad­vert­ising, specify this in the body of the e-mail
  • Remove anyone wishing to opt out within ten business days

Man makes a living suing spammers

If your company continues to spam users, you could find yourself being sued by people like Daniel Balsam, a marketer from San Francisco, who became a lawyer after receiving one too many spam e-mails himself. He spends his days filing lawsuits against e-mail marketers who aren’t adhering to CAN-SPAM (the anti-spam law in the US) guidelines. Many companies find it easier to just pay a small set­tle­ment rather than go through the courts which could prove costly. He looks out for e-mails with mis­lead­ing subject lines or those without 'opt out' pos­sib­il­it­ies.

It’s all or nothing with double opt in

Reputable e-mail marketing is based on the consent of the recipient. According to the defin­i­tion, spam is nothing but unwanted ad­vert­ising. Busi­nesses that send out news­let­ters and e-mails should use the double opt in process. You can’t do things by halves since you only achieve legal certainty when you adhere to the guidelines when creating con­firm­a­tion e-mails. Doc­u­ment­ing the most important in­form­a­tion such as IP addresses and the date of the re­gis­tra­tion and con­firm­a­tion is always a good idea. This way you can quickly fend off any justified warnings.

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